Full Steam Ahead

As the Asian Banking School celebrates its third year of operations, Business Today speaks to Professor Colyn Gardner, Chief Executive Officer of ABS on the school’s plans of growing with the industry.

- Nur Atifi & Aron Raj

Malaysia’s growth and transformation are strongly supported by its financial system, which has also been a catalyst in facilitating economic development. According to Bank Negara Malaysia, the strategic role of the Malaysian financial sector will continue to be an important one as Malaysia becomes even more integrated with the international financial system and the global economy.

The rapid changes in the financial sector what many would call disruptors – will also lend a hand in transforming the landscape of the Malaysian financial system. Often times many view change or disruption as something negative. On the contrary, there are opportunities ahead if one were to embrace change.

This is the very notion that propels the Asian Banking School (ABS) forward in delivering premium learning development programmes to financial institutions in the country.

“Disruptors are everywhere, and I would like to think that ABS is a disruptor in a sense that we want to disrupt the traditional training industry in Southeast Asia… not just in Kuala Lumpur. And I mean it in the most positive way. Discovering how you can best embrace disruption and benefit from it is something quite exciting,” says Professor Colyn Gardner, Chief Executive Officer of ABS.

“We are disrupting what was perhaps the old way of doing things. There has been a tendency to stick to the same topics and the type of courses year after year. Our view is that we have to look constantly for new subjects and develop the right programmes to get people up to speed as quickly as possible.”

Filling the Gap

Since its inception three years ago, ABS is now the largest specialised provider of quality banking training programmes in the region, through its wide range of programmes - curated specifically for the banking and financial industry.